MAYFL adding flag football for grades K-2

Midland Area Youth Football League President Eric Buschlen is excited about the league's addition of five-on-five flag football for kindergarten through second grade starting this September.

The new addition supplements the tackle football program for grades 3-6 offered by MAYFL, an organization which started in 1955.

Both the flag football and tackle football programs are open to girls and boys, and the games are played behind Dow High School.

Buschlen said on Tuesday that 30 players were already registered for flag football at that point. He sees the new program as a good introduction to youth football for younger kids, and for their parents.

"We talked about it on the (MAYFL) board for two years, and we see it as a way to introduce the younger kids and their parents (to youth football)," Buschlen said, noting that flag football players and parents will also be able to watch the tackle football games on adjacent fields. "They'll be able to see what the next level is like.

"It's our goal as a board to proliferate football in Midland, so we thought, 'Why not start as early as we can?' which is in kindergarten," Buschlen added.

He also said that MAYFL places a strong emphasis on safety for its players.